Bowie State Beats Elizabeth City State

Junior Terence Peete, Jr. recovered an Elizabeth City State fumble and returned it 33 yards for the game winning touchdown as Bowie State scored 20 unanswered points in the final 10 minutes to defeat the Elizabeth City State Vikings 37-33 on Sat., Oct. 10. The wins keeps Bowie State undefeated in the CIAA Eastern Division at 4-0 and 5-2 overall.

The game didn€t begin very well for Bowie State as the Bulldogs were hit with a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for a pre-game infraction. That proved costly as Elizabeth City State€s Reggie Smith returned the opening kickoff for a 74-yard touchdown. The extra point was blocked.

Elizabeth City State added six more to the scoreboard after Smith hauled in a 78 pass from Creven Powell. Tashawn Lee caught a 17-yard touchdown pass from Powell and Mendez€s extra point increased Elizabeth City State€s lead to 20-0 in the first quarter. Bowie State sophomore James Proctor, Jr. returned the ensuing kickoff 84 yards for the Bulldogs first points of the game.

Elizabeth City State clicked produced 314 yards in total offense, 259 passing and 55 rushing while holding Bowie to 78 yards total, 60 passing, in the first half.

Freshman quarterback Emmanuel Yeager threw his second interception of the game after BSU€s Bulldogs received the opening kickoff. Fortunately for Bowie State, Elizabeth City State gave the ball right back after a fumble.

Bowie State made their third quarterback change of the game with just over 12 minutes left in the third quarter, putting freshman Tyrae Reid, Jr. Reid scored a rushing touchdown to make the score 26-14. A field goal made the score 26-17.

Penalties continued to mount for Bowie State, as Elizabeth City State scored again on a short field, making the score 33-17.

Then, sophomore Seth Minter caught a 45-yard pass from Yeager for a Bowie State touchdown. BSU€s two-point conversion failed and made the score 33-23 Senior Rodney scored a rushing touchdown to make the score 33-30.

Junior Sterling Grant-Jones then forced a fumble, which was recovered by Peete and returned 33 yards for a Bulldogs touchdown. Gagne converted the extra point, giving Bowie State a 37-33 lead.

Elizabeth City State put together a good drive on their next possession but a Peete interception in the Vikings end zone sealed the divisional win for Bowie State. Peete and Grant-Jones were huge on BSU€s defense, tallying a team-high eight tackles.

Yeager led the Bowie State offense with 170 passing yards, completing 12-of-22 passes and Webb led the Bulldogs rushers with 57 yards on 18 carries. Senior Larry Dixon, Jr. ended the game with a team-high 50 reception yards and sophomore Clifton Budd (was a close second with 45 reception yards.